Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Dede]

Sorry, didn't explain that very well....

My shoulder has suffered some kind of trauma resulting in strained/ stressed muscle.
My osteopath has helped to reduce the swelling and dr said this has revealed
nerve route irritation. I've got existing carpal tunnel but now got different hand brace to support hand in a more upright position, caused  by nerve route irritation.

I read that nerve route pain can travel down legs and osteopath said it could be.
It does sound like sciatica I agree.

It's nearly three months since it happened.

[CLKD]

Nerve root pain can certainly travel but it is unlikely for any neck strain to travel into the legs.

Each nerve root [route] travels it's own way.  Maybe have a look-see on a good diagram of the various nerves. 

Some people find that night splints keep the wrists stiff which might lessen carpal tunnel pain.  The other option is surgery.  Hormones can certainly make carpal tunnel pain worse.  Some people complain of pins and needles too.

From the NHS web-site:

Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a common condition that causes a tingling sensation, numbness and sometimes pain in the hand and fingers.
These sensations usually develop gradually and start off being worse during the night. They tend to affect the thumb, index finger and middle finger.
Other symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include:
pins and needles (paraesthesia)
thumb weakness
a dull ache in the hand or arm
Read about the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.

[CLKD]

from "spine-health.com"

Cervical Nerve Functions

Each level of the cervical spine actually has two nerve roots—one on each side—that branch off from the spinal cord.

Keeping with the aforementioned example at the C5-C6 level, each C6 nerve root exits the spinal canal through a bony hole (foramina) on both sides of the neck. From there, the C6 nerve root feeds into nerves that run down their own side's shoulder, arm, and hand.


Cervical nerves provide control and sensation to different parts of the body based on the spinal level from where they branch out. More specifically:

C1, C2, and C3 (the first three cervical nerves) control the head and neck, including movements forward, backward, and to the sides. These nerves also play key roles in breathing.

The C2 dermatome handles sensation for the upper part of the head, and the C3 dermatome covers the side of the face and behind the head. (C1 does not have a dermatome.)

C4 helps control the shoulders as well as the diaphragm—the sheet of muscle that stretches to the bottom of the rib cage—for breathing. The C4 dermatome covers the neck and top of the shoulders.

C5 controls upper body muscles like the deltoids (which form the rounded contours of the shoulders) and the biceps (which allow flexion of the elbow and rotation of the forearm). The C5 dermatome covers the shoulders and outer part of the arm down to about the elbow or close to the wrist.

C6 controls the wrist extensors (muscles like the extensor carpi radialis longus, extensor carpi radialis brevis, and extensor carpi ulnaris that control wrist extension and hyperextension) and also provides some innervation to the biceps. The C6 dermatome covers the top of the shoulders and runs down the side of the arm and into the thumb side of the hand.

C7 controls the triceps (the large muscle on the back of the arm that allows for straightening of the elbow). The C7 dermatome goes from the shoulder down the back of the arm and into the middle finger.
C8 controls the hands.

The C8 dermatome covers the lower part of the shoulder and goes down the arm into the pinky side of the hand.

I can find nothing that suggests any nerves from the cervical spine travel into the legs.  This would be from further down ;-) i.e. lumbar spine.